


Anonymous Presence

by iRockYourSocks



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Gen, Minor Character Death, School Violence, TW: Blood
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-10-10
Updated: 2014-10-09
Packaged: 2018-02-20 13:56:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,996
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2431319
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iRockYourSocks/pseuds/iRockYourSocks
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>That’s the point, right? The prayed for goal? Don’t make any noise so that any possible school threat will pass by your class’s door, believing that the room was empty. Honestly, it’s a silly idea, because it’s a high school in the middle of the morning; where else would all the students and faculty be?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Anonymous Presence

**Author's Note:**

> This twoshot is literally based on my worst nightmare. It crosses my mind every single day at school. Call me morbid, I like to say cautionary (and a bit paranoid).
> 
> Also, this was written like a year ago. I tried to edit it, but hey.

_I feel monotony and death to be almost the same._ -Charlotte Bronte

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Tick

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Tock

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Tick

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Tock

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The classroom was dark and void of the usual chattering. It was uncomfortable, how silent this normally rambunctious classroom was.

The halls were empty, not a single soul roaming the corridors covered with posters advertising yearbooks and flyers about voting for the next class president.

That’s the point, right? The prayed for goal? Don’t make any noise so that any possible school threat will pass by your class’s door, believing that the room was empty. Honestly, it’s a silly idea, because it’s a high school in the middle of the morning; where else would all the students and faculty be?

Korra sighed, leaning her head against the hard wall. The only sound echoing through the classroom was the ticking of the clock above the whiteboard. It wasn’t so loud before, and Korra faintly wonders if the boredom triggered by this lockdown drill was causing her to be a little more aware, more conscious of her surroundings.

Her host family would be proud of her, and by family, she means Tenzin. He constantly harps on about how she should relax and just _breathe_ (to which she sarcastically responded that she would have been long gone and decaying in a hole in the ground if she didn’t breathe). She finally saw the point of his _breathing_ now; she felt calm, serene, and less annoyed with the silence of the room. 

She still wasn’t set on meditating, though. That would be a headache for another day.

She’s glad that she’s stuck in study hall, the one class of the day that doesn’t always grate on her nerves. They had a substitute to monitor them today. He was a young guy, probably fresh out of college. Korra rolled her eyes whenever she heard the girls in the hallways giggle about the “hot new sub” that they wouldn’t mind pouring marinara sauce on and eating up. She cringed at the visual. She’d rather not think of Firehouse Subs and the substitute teacher in the same thought.

She looked around, her eyes landing on Mako, who appeared completely and utterly bored. His arms were crossed over his chest, his eyes closed. Korra can’t help the flutter of butterflies in her stomach every time she saw him. Even though they were tryingto be _just friends_ , she doesn’t see the harm in looking at him, so long as she didn’t touch. She didn’t feel like dealing with the backlash that’s sure to happen if she and Mako were to admit their attraction again.

That kiss was a mistake. A _really_ good mistake.

She shook her head, ridding it of _those_ thoughts. Korra could feel a blush beginning to heat her face, and she had no desire to explain its origin.

Her eyes wandered toward Bolin, who was engrossed in his game of Candy Crush. Korra’s lips curled upward in a smile (only Bolin would be playing phone games during a lockdown drill). She’s glad that their friendship was still going on strong and that that mishap with Mako didn’t destroy everything that they had.

Korra dropped her head forward, a shaky breath escaping her lips. The lockdown should be over soon; these deep thoughts were beginning to give her a headache.

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Tick

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Tock

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_Silence is the most perfect expression of scorn._ -George Bernard Shaw

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The quiet kid that sat in the back of the classroom was breathing audibly and rapidly. Korra’s head snapped up; she’s never heard the guy say anything the entire semester except for a few disturbing mutterings; honestly, she’d never even caught wind of his name. She craned her neck towards him, curious about why he’s panicking; it’s just a drill, after all. He’s holding something in his hands, some cloth with something more dense wrapped inside. 

Korra crawled towards him, laying her hand on his shoulder. “Everything okay?” He shook his head, his unruly hair falling in his eyes. She reached for the object in his hand, and he jerked his entire body away from her. His lips were moving, but she didn’t understand what he was saying. “Wait, what?”

He tilted his head to her, round, grey eyes pleading. “He’s going to be _so_ mad at me. He’s going to call me _weak_ and end me himself. I’m not ready to die yet. Nobody here is! But they’re going to, and it’s all _his_ fault.”

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Korra’s eyes had only started to widen when she hears the first gunshot.

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That was when the screams echoed through the halls, chilling her to the bone.

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And life would never be the same.

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The classroom was shocked into silence, unsure of what was happening. It had to be a senior prank, right? Put gunfire and screams on the intercom during a lockdown, ha ha, very funny. 

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Well, not funny in the traditional sense, but surely the prankster would be memorable in infamy.

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Unless, of course, unless it was real.

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That, if the situation were such, changes things.

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Korra ripped the cloth out of the boy’s lap, gasping when she heard the dull _thump_ of the gun hitting the ground. Her ears faintly picked up Mako murmuring her name and telling Bolin to call the police, much closer than she expected him to be ( _boundaries_ , and all that jazz), and the substitute trying to calm the class down. She realized that she was trembling as he pulled her away by the shoulders from the boy, a scowl on his face.

“What the hell is going on? And what the _fuck_ is that?” Korra’s eyes trailed up his form, seeing his sights were set on the weapon on the ground in front of them. Her body was half hidden behind Mako’s at this point, and she could see the worried expression on Bolin’s face a few feet away as he frantically dialed for help.

The boy’s lips were moving, his eyes wide with fear, but no noise escaped him. Mako hoisted the boy up by the collar, his face twisting into a snarl. “What. Is. Going. _On_?” 

The sound of gunshots were still audible. The screams were getting louder.

The boy gulped, training his eyes to the whiteboard, still scrawled with the days lesson. _Back when things were normal_. “Amon, he-he made me do this...made _us_ do this. I-I didn’t want to, but it’s either me or the ones who deserve it. I thought I’d be safe...” Tears began to dribble down his face, sobs making his words unintelligible.

Korra looked at Mako, who in turn looked at Bolin.

Their school had become a war zone.

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The sounds of the clock are drowned out by gunshots and cries for help.

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“Bolin! What’s the hold up?” His amber eyes betrayed his usual calm, panic seeping into his features.

Bolin shrugged, his big, meaty fingers ending the call for the umpteenth time. His brow furrowed, his emerald eyes glassy. “I-I don’t know. It says I don’t have any signal...” His breath came out in stuttered gasps, his shoulders shaking.

Looking around, other students had their phones pull out and were trying to contact help: the police, parents, _anybody_ , to no avail. This was worrying news if the assailants in the school had blocked the only way for them to save themselves.

Korra placed here hand on his arm, a determined look in her eyes. “We have to get help. They jammed the signal or something so we can’t use our phones. We _have_ to get help, and see if everyone is okay.”

The brothers looked at her as if she grew two heads. They knew that they needed to find help, but it was dangerous to leave their classroom. Mako stepped forward, exhaling through his nose. “Okay, Bolin, you stay with mister...uh, the substitute, and make sure you and the rest of the class gets out safe. Me and Korra will find help.” 

Bolin furrowed his brow. “He would never let you two leave. It’s not safe.”

Korra placed her hand on his forearm. “We’ll separate from the class or something. We’re on the first floor, so you’ll probably escape through the window. The hallways aren’t safe.”

He sighed, slumping his shoulders in defeat. He hated being treated like a kid brother, but he knew that they were only looking out for him. Bolin bit his lip and nodded, lunging forward to encase his brother in a bone crushing hug. “I love you, big bro.”

Mako smiled softly, leaning into the embrace. “Love you back, little bro. Be careful.”

“You too.”

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_If you’re going through hell, keep going._ -Winston Churchill

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Korra and Mako stayed back, hidden near one of the cupboards in the back of the room. They could see Bolin trembling as he jumped through the window to what would hopefully be safety. Korra felt Mako exhale, his stress for his brother’s well being radiating in the small corner.  Korra felt guilty, because it was her idea that separated the duo, but Mako wouldn’t let her go by herself. She placed her hand on his shoulder gently, hoping to silently reassure him. He all but brushed her away, walking towards the door. She sighed, nearly hanging her head. She understood his worry, but he didn’t have to shrug her off like that. 

She admired him for that, for openly caring for his brother. She knew that Bolin was all the family he had left, and while Korra was attending school there as an exchange student, her parents were alive and well in her frozen tundra of a homeland. It wasn’t right of her to be so inwardly irritated at Mako for worrying for his little brother. To be perfectly honest, sometimes she felt that the guy only had to functions: “mama Mako” mode and “pain in her ass” mode. Strangely, that didn’t detract from her desire of him. Even stranger was why her thoughts drifted to that, of all things.

Korra quickly decided that she didn’t like the quiet. It made her think of things best left buried. She felt Mako nudge her shoulder, his eyebrow raised in question about her hesitation. She shook her head, motioning him to move.

The halls were empty, but they could hear the students clambering out of windows, desks and chairs being knocked over, teachers frantically shouting for order, and the occasional gunfire. They had to move fast.

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Korra almost missed the monotonous sound of the clock ticking.

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Back when everything was normal.

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Looking back on her life, Korra wished that she held more sympathy for those attacked in the ridiculous, over the top slasher films. Admittedly, their own idiotic tendencies was the prime candidate for their untimely demises; honestly, how hard was it to run without falling? To not stop and gawk at every little thing that they say? To not freeze at the sight of something unsettling? She used to laugh at the fear in their eyes, the near comical way their eyes widened into caricatures of what she thought real fear was.

Staring down the hall at the sight in front of her, she understood what real fear was.

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Korra used to think that red was a beautiful color.

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But this was too much, too excessive.

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She would have collapsed if it hadn’t been for Mako’s firm grip on her elbow.

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Everything was _red_. Not that beautiful, bright, cherry red that is seen on television and in movies. No, _this_ was a dark, sinister looking substance covering the floors, the walls, the lockers.

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And lying in the middle of the carnage was Tahno, Ming, and Shaozu.

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And they weren’t moving.

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If the situation wasn’t so dire, Korra would’ve mentioned how the seemingly invincible group of friends were suddenly helpless, their lively spirits taken by some misguided student with a weapon he or she shouldn’t have had. She felt Mako stop moving beside her, causing her to realize that she too had become still.

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_Is this even real?_


End file.
